


Annunciation

by devovere



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: 25 Days of Voyager 2018, Allegory, Biblical Reinterpretation, Crossover, Episode: s02e04 Elogium, Episode: s03e11-12 Past Tense, Fear, Gen, Hope, Long Live Feedback Comment Project, Minor Character(s), Pregnancy, but not overtly religious, it took her over a year to realize she's pregnant, not that this really gives us one, that begs for an explanation doesn't it?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-01
Updated: 2018-12-01
Packaged: 2019-09-02 18:54:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 660
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16792750
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/devovere/pseuds/devovere
Summary: Sam has a visitor with Big News.





	Annunciation

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to Klugtiger, TheShorty, and BlackVelvet, who all offered a sounding board and encouragement for this idea. 
> 
> And above all, thanks to ariella884 for organizing this inaugural 25 Days of Voyager! I'm honored to lead off this advent season of creative sharing and can't wait to see what all the other participants will give us to enjoy.

**Mid-2372 — A few days before “Elogium.”**

“Well hello there, you lucky lady!”

Sam opened her eyes. All she knew at first was that she was in a dark place. The air smelled foul. Toxic. She had the impression of a tall wall and shadowy forms huddled together beneath it. As she gazed, the sky lightened almost imperceptibly, and she realized she was on a planet shortly before dawn.

The voice that had called her to this place boomed again, resonant with joy. “Lucky lady, fortunate one. You have friends in high places!”

Sam turned away from the wall, and the increasing light showed her a man: human, tall, solid. Face dark and far more somber than his voice had sounded.

“What?” she asked, profoundly disoriented.

“I’m telling you.” Intent, overflowing with elation, although he still did not smile. “It may be hard to believe how such glad news could come at a time like this, but it’s true.”

She stared at him and knew somehow that his next words would change … everything.

“Samantha, you’re going to have a baby.”

She recoiled. That wasn’t possible, not anymore. She knew it wasn’t possible.

Yet at the same time, she knew he spoke truly, and for that reason his words terrified her.

The man must have seen her fear, for the next thing he said was, “No, don’t worry. This is wonderful! Don’t be afraid of anything. You’ll give birth to a daughter. Call her Naomi.”

Sam shook her head, trying to clear it of his words, of her new knowledge. “I can’t be pregnant,” she stammered. “My husband is on the other side of the galaxy. I haven’t had sex in over a year. _You’re not making any sense_.”

He shrugged, suddenly nonchalant. “Sense isn’t my job. The EMH will figure out how it happened; I’m here to tell you why.”

Head spinning with bewilderment, Sam asked, “I’m pregnant … for a purpose?”

“Oh yes.” His smile utterly transformed his face, turning weariness to delight.

Against all reason, Sam felt her own lips curve upward, as if at a shared secret joy.

He continued, “Your child will give everyone here the hope they need to keep going.” His gesture, arms spread wide, returned her attention to their surroundings.

Now she heard people moaning, perceived the hunger and despair all around them, the stench of filth and sickness clinging to everything.

“Everyone here?” Sam echoed, shrinking into herself. “I don’t know where here is. I’m supposed to be on _Voyager_.”

His arms fell to his sides again and the smile slid off his face. “This isn’t so different from _Voyager_ in some ways. Earth in 2024. We’re in pretty dire shape. And things will get worse before they get better.”

Sam shuddered, cold with dread. She knew the planet’s history. He was right. “Who in their right mind would bring a child into this world?”

The man met her eyes, and it was like diving into a calm clear lake, soothing and free. “One who believes in the future,” he replied simply.

Peace filled her.

“Okay,” she murmured. “If you say so. Okay.”

He smiled again. “I’m glad I got to be the one to tell you, Samantha.”

The morning’s first rays of sunlight reached his face, but the glowing warmth somehow came from within him, incandescent, transcendent. She felt the edges of her awareness shifting back to her own reality as this one began to slip away. She was … returning to her time and place? Waking from a dream? Would she ever know? Did it even matter?

Desperately, she asked the only question her lips could form in that moment. “Who _are_ you?”

——-

Sam was in her bed, her lonely, empty bed on _Voyager_. Whatever she had just experienced, it was over.

But then her hand drifted down to cradle her lower belly with tenderness and wonder.

She thought, “ _Naomi_ ,” and heard again the man’s last words:

“The name is Bell. Gabriel Bell.”

**Author's Note:**

> Loosely inspired by the biblical story of the annunciation, as told in [Luke 1:26-38](https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+1%3A26-38&version=NIV)
> 
> For anyone who might wonder, this story is not part of my ["Traveling Woman"](https://archiveofourown.org/series/877323) series about Samantha Wildman. 
> 
> This story is part of the [LLF Comment Project](https://longlivefeedback.tumblr.com/llfcommentproject), which was created to improve communication between readers and authors. I invite and appreciate feedback, including:
> 
>   * Short comments
>   * Long comments
>   * Questions
>   * Constructive criticism
>   * <3 as extra kudos
>   * Reader-reader interaction
> 

> 
> [LLF Comment Builder](https://longlivefeedback.tumblr.com/post/170952243543/now-presenting-the-llf-comment-builder-beta) may be a useful resource for some. 
> 
> I reply to comments. That means you can expect me to reply to your comment, eventually and barring unforeseen circumstances. (Once in a while I miss or don't receive a notification, for example.) 
> 
> If you _don’t_ want a reply, for any reason, feel free to sign your comment with “whisper.” I will appreciate it but not respond.


End file.
